December 10th was the 13th year anniversary of my Craniopharyngioma, which is a benign brain tumor that begins in the pituitary gland. I had my first surgery on Dec 10th and my second surgery on Dec 14th. I was in the hospital for almost a month and not expected to survive. They told my parents if I did survive, not only was I going to face serious medical conditions I was going to be totally blind. After defying the odds and only being partially blind, I was diagnosed with HypoPituitarism, Secondary Adrenal Insufficiency, HypoThyroidism, and Traumatic Optic Nerve Neuropathy. I remember struggling every day to physically get up out of bed to get ready and go to work, take care of my responsibilities, and live my daily life. There were many times, I wondered what my future was going to look like if I survived and if I was going to need a caregiver at some point. I realize that if I would've stayed in Colorado and kept going the way I was, I wasn't going to make it much longer. My body and mind were at their breaking point and something was going to give. I had my moments when I literally wanted to end it all and give up because I was so tired of constantly being in and out of the ER and hospital, and struggled to find the right Endocrinologist for my treatment, and my fear was that I was going to be a burden to someone.
Fast forward to now, being back in Texas for the past two
years and my health has improved and my body and mind are in a better state. I
found an Endocrinologist that has been very supportive, thinks outside of the
box and listens to me. I'm able to manage my disease in a much better way now
than ever before and how ironic that now I'm a caregiver to my parents. I'm
thankful that God intervened and didn't allow me to take my life into my own
hands. I'm thankful for everything that I've gone through because it's made me
appreciate every single day that I breathe life. God works in mysterious ways
and continues to bless and empower me to carry on the mission He has for me.
Thank you for your transparency. What caused the condition in the first place. I think your fear was to be expected and no one would condemn you for it.
ReplyDeleteTeacherRos prior to my diagnosis, I had just started my new job at the Sheriff's Office, I bought a brand new Toyota truck, and had started going to the gym every morning before work. I was excited for this new opportunity and had tons of energy. Literally, from one day to the next my energy level went from 100 to 0 overnight. Next thing you know, I had no energy, was fatigued all the time, and migraines that I had never experienced before. I thought it was something simple that my Primary Dr would fix because I've always been healthy. I didn't think it was anything that serious. Once I found out what I had, I was okay let's take it out so I can move on. Once I discovered it wasn't going to be that simple and that I was going to manage my disease for the rest of my life, that's when I believed my life was over as I knew it. I was grieving what my life once was and petrified of what my new reality was going to be.
ReplyDelete